saw they were about half way round. They didn't pause to
exchange any words but, waving their hands, went on their way and
rounded again on Summit Avenue.

As they saw each other approach, they regulated their speed in a careful
attempt to meet exactly where they had started. Dotty had to curb her
speed and go a little more slowly or she would be ahead of time. But
Dolly saw that it would take a pretty strong spurt for her to reach the
goal, so when they were about ten feet apart Dolly made a special effort
and put all her strength into a last grand dash. Dotty hadn't looked for
this and as she rolled rather slowly to the appointed place Dolly came
along and with a fell swoop, unable to control her direction, she
crashed right into Dotty and the two girls went down in a heap. The
impact was so sudden and unexpected that neither had a chance to save
herself in any way and there was a tangle of waving arms and legs, and
skate-rollers as the crash occurred.

"I've broken myself," Dolly announced calmly, though her voice sounded
dazed and queer. Dotty opened her mouth to speak but changed her mind
and gave voice to the wildest kind of a shriek. She followed this up
with several others of increasing force and volume and looked at Dolly,
wondering why she didn't yell too. But the reason was that Dolly had
fainted and the white face and closed eyes of her friend made Dotty
scream louder than ever.

Various members of the two families ran to the scene, as well as several
neighbours.

Mrs. Fayre and Mrs. Rose looked on somewhat helplessly at the two girls,
but Aunt Clara went at once at the rescue. She and Trudy lifted Dotty to
her feet and found she could stand.

"Try to stop screaming, dearie," said Aunt Clara, "and tell me where
you're hurt."

"I don't know," cried Dotty; "I don't know and I don't care! But Dolly
is dead! My Dolly, my own Dollyrinda is dead! And it's all my fault
'cause I made her go skating, and my arm hurts awful! Ow!"

"Her arm is broken," said Mrs. Bayliss, gently lifting Dotty's right
hand, which caused more piercing shrieks. "What shall we do? Somebody
call a doctor quick!"

Meanwhile the strong arms of a neighbour's gardener had lifted Dolly and
was carrying her toward her own home.

"It's her leg that's bruk," he said, holding her as gently as possible.
"It's good luck she fainted; she'll come round all right, but she's bruk
a bone, the poor dear."

It seemed ages to the anxious mothers